Medical personnel throughout the world confront the daily risk of accidental puncture by used disposable needles. In turn, accidental puncture presents the risk of infection by potentially deadly diseases. Over time, the exposure of doctors or veterinarians, nurses, and technicians to used needles is so massive that occasional punctures are almost a certainty. The medical industry is in dire need of a device that can eliminate these risks. But in order to be accepted, any such device must present a per item cost proportional to the risk present, and the device must be introducable into the medical industry without the need to alter the design of disposable needle assemblies themselves. Unless these two prerequisites are met, the device will likely be destined for the dust bin of history.
What is needed is a simply manufactured device that is extremely inexpensive and provides a method of rendering used disposable needles relatively safe from accidental punctures.